Ensoniq Mirage
It's a confusing device - two halves of the keyboard carry a separate sample memory of 64k thus making 128k in total (not expandable). Each sample memory can be chopped up into a maximum of 8 parts, allocated to separate keys individually, many other things are possible too such as sample rate and key transpose.
Complete with a disk drive, using single sided disks ( 350k) but there is a double sided modification which can be done - which I have done to my Mirage and works fine. This means in place of the 6 sounds (that's 3 x upper and lower samples) per disk I can now have twice that - a very neat mod. Full details are available from the Mirage user group. Take a good look at the photo above, see a little red blob above left of the pitch wheel? That's the switch I've added to select disk side A or B.
Essentials:-
Warning
Without items 1, 2, 3 and 4 you are severely restricted to just
looking at your Mirage.
Many people usually have some of these items missing which is a problem,
but all is not lost Syntaur in Texas sell most of the thing you'll need.
Or try and find where 3D Sounds have gone (then tell me) find the CD-ROM
called The Sample
Bank as that CD-ROM contains a lot of sounds. Use
Giebler's EDE program to copy files off your PC directly onto a Mirage
native floppy. Most wonderful.
Programming is quite confusing.. remembering all those numbers soon gets me in a muddle, maybe not worth the effort sampling your own stuff particularly when Doug's CD-ROM is available. The machine can do a lot but you've only got that 2 digit display telling you what is going on, the manuals take some following. Sampling your own sounds and allocating them is quite tricky.
There were and still are if you can find them, computer editors around I have one called SoundWorks for the Atari ST written by Steingberg which I must admit has taught me a lot about the Mirage. If you can find this software I suggest you get it - however it has a few minor problems.
Working with those programming codes is a pain, very often I would have to search through the two Mirage manuals to find explanations - loosing that magic moment.
Having spent some time working with the codes it soon becomes apparent a computer based editor is really the answer, complete with built in 'house keeping functions' I can only surmise this is how Ensoniq really did things, pressing Mirage buttons just gets so confusing with all those dos and don'ts.
To make things simpler I have written a fully featured editor, programming
the Mirage has never been so easy!
Quite an instrument! Those people at Ensoniq really put their minds
to this keyboard! A deceptively simple keyboard with a zillion ideas actually
available for real! At the time about 1984 I guess, a ground breaking instrument.
The basic sounds are samples but the rest of the instrument is like
any conventional analogue synth with all the usual filters, ADSR, modulators
etc.
The instrument features:
A voice is built up from three separate samples from a palette of 16 - thru a DCA - the three sources feed into a filter. There are cross linking and modulation options.
Just about everything can control or modify something else - although the separate building blocks and synth structure is easy to understand but due to the modulation options it can get quite confusing.
The keyboard of the instrument is above average in feel and playability, it has a good action, not too light, each key has a slight convex top which actually makes for a much faster playing surface - but I suppose that's down to personal preference.
The instrument has a built in sequencer and after spending time with
the SD-1's sequencer I now see how it all works.
I bought a manual from a company called Katamar Entertainment Group
in the USA. There are a lot of pictorial errors plus the descriptions are
confusing, not a good manual hence I dumped it.
As for the build quality it's not quite up to Japanese standard but it comes a close second. There are few custom mouldings, the case is a simple pressed and folded sheet metal affair held together with simple fixings.
Inside you'll find the main circuit board built to a respectable standard using good quality components, the board is held in place by fixing posts with sticky feet. Which usually come unstuck with age - mine have. From a gigging point of view I would expect to do some beefing up.
I'm not saying it's crude and crappy no certainly not the unit is
quite robust and strong - nothing a few nuts, bolts and silicone goo wouldn't
cure.
Considering it's a sample based unit, the acoustic piano is not too good, electric piano and organ are acceptable but as for synth type sounds it's exceptional - really.
An annoying problem with mine was mains power transformer inside
the unit. After about 30 mins of vigorous playing the transformer starts
to rattle. Thumping the case usually stops it, until a few moments later...
Examining the cause of the problem reveals the transformer, a heavy
item, is riveted to the floor of the case, these rivets work loose just
a little causing the magnetic field produced by the transformer to influence
the metal case so causing it to rattle.
It drives me crazy I have now replaced the rivets with nuts and
bolts - happiness!
More good news, I've now programmed a microcontroller which reads the front panel buttons, so my ESQ1 is fully functional again. Note, this fix does not address the faulty display problem, it only fixes the dead button problem. Maybe later I'll do a complete fix to encompass the display driver too.
Here is a photo of said device:
Apparently known as the VFX-SD with everything put right or what
Ensoniq were aiming at in the first place, but once again restricted by
time and available technology.
Essentially the sound source is a sample to which filters etc. can be used, I suppose very much like the ESQ-1 but with much better quality sounds, the originating sound can be modified in many useful ways to create interesting new sounds.
I understand that at the time the synth buying public chose a synth on the quality of it's acoustic piano sound, so Ensoniq allocated a lot of the memory to this. Sure enough the piano sound is very good, no mistake, no compromises, excellent. Left hand grunt for boogie-woogie right hand tink for everything else overall a good blend. In fact I wiped the smile from a guy at rehearsal onetime who was criticizing Ensoniq I've never heard a decent piano sound on an Ensoniq..ever! sure enough he scorned when he saw my SD-1 for the first time. When I left the room there he was playing away enjoying every minute of it. Now he appreciates and respects Ensoniq.
Built in effects? Yes there is a good quality digital reverb, again
fully programmable including a Leslie simulator with distortion which can
be mapped to the mod wheel. Yes it all works just fine - excellent quality.
There is a 3.5 inch disk drive for voice data, patch arrangements
and sequences etc. which also allows you to load in newer sequencer operating
systems, good idea.
I am beginning to like very much how Ensoniq designed the sequencer. I can put down a groove in no time, then play about jamming over the top for hours!
An Ensoniq Sequence
is an unspecified number of bars with up to 12 different sounds allocated
to say 12 midi channels, the idea is this sequence then could be a single
verse, or chorus, bridge, intro or ending.
So you set the sequence up with say 16 bars, play bass, drums, etc.
all on different tracks (as in midi channel).
Repeat this for the intro, chorus etc. You can then arrange the order
in which the final song will play on the fly simply by pressing the appropriate
button, once you know the order simply program it into the SD-1.
That creates a song made up from sequences, each sequence being
a verse, chorus. etc.
Once I had grasped and tried this it all works real easy. PLUS I
found step editing easy too, AND the quantize is good and on it goes..
Now I understand how it operates I am impressed. Well done Ensoniq.
Now here's the biggest concern.. outdoor gigs! yes indeed every time
I've gigged the synth at an outdoor gig powered from generators the display
goes nutty! Panic! I've just had to hope all hangs together... and it did.
I think the display multiplexing is synchronised to the incoming mains
frequency. When running off alternators, which produce harmonics which
I think gives the SD1 circuit a hard time. Subsequently after running the
SD1 a few times off household mains the display goes back to normal.
Be it conventional sounds or weird sounds they're big and beefy whilst
being clear and precise, a good kick ass type sound. In my opinion more
powerful than the Japanese gear. For example I open the set at a gig using
a big space landing type sound mutating into heavenly voices colossal you
should see the faces on the audience! Excellent!
Yes I like this synth, it's the full monty.
Another Ensoniq keyboard?? ...yes. Well it was at a really good price and I'm not too pleased with the ESI-32 and I wanted a sampler to gig.. and with built in effects.. and a keyboard version. This EPS16+ came up at a bargain price.
As with all these samplers, they are quite complex and take some getting familiar with. The manual is very good but it will still take some effort to get the information into your head. Get the list of functions, use that for quick reference then refer to the manual for the detail.
Another plus point for Ensoniq is making their gear accessible to third party developers. We can then do more things with the hardware as supplied by Ensoniq but also do things they didn't deem a priority or had time.
It is quite easy to make new sounds for the the EPS16+, it has been
designed from the ground up to allow you the user to create new sounds
quite easily. All the software tools (functions) are there ready to go.
Hard drive not required. Plus using WAV to EPS16+ (Sample Vision) allows
limitless possibilities. There are just too many functions to list here,
but if you can think of something you want to do with a sample chances
are the EPS16+ will allow you to do it.
Heard of the Transwave? An Ensoniq innovation, think of it like a series of slightly changing waveforms, but each gets played back one at a time, can change from one to the next, a sort of morphing.
Transwave: imaging a complete wavesample made up of equal sized loops. Have a sound A, which is a loop in itself. Next to that have a similar but slightly different waveloop B, and so on. Stick them together into one long wavesample and get: ABCDEFG
The idea is to first play loop A, then using modulators move through
the loops B, C, D, E, F to get to G. For example start off with a square
wave, mutate through to a triangle wave. A very interesting effect.
It's not easy to produce a transwave but Arno's software makes it
easy.
So it's a wonderful sampler, the sound quality is not outstanding.
There are times when the various buzzes and pops the EPS16+ introduces
can halt development of a particular sound. Sometimes noise on transpose
is a problem too, so this isn't a perfect unit.
The EPS16+ is one of those things that there is always something new to do, it is actually a competent sampler, as with all samplers it's a case of learning the operating system and feeding it the right samples.
I would add the EPS16+ is a performance (as in live) sampler,
it's very good for gigging, program it up and play live use the various
live features and the instrument is flexible. I would think it's not as
good as some of the other brands at taking a large loop and playing it
continuously. It can do it but that is not what the EPS16+ is about.
Having now explored my copy of MIDI Disk Tools program... and much
to my disappointment all the program does is crash making it totally useless!!
I've spoken to Garth at Rubber Chicken but there seems nothing he can suggest
to cure the problem. The suggestions being, re-install MIDI Disk Tools
again, and again and again... then try re-installing Win95. I've installed
MDT now on a number of separate computers (Win 98) and they all show the
same bugs.
I spoken to the software gurus were I work and they seem to think
it's the program that is at fault. The errors being generated by Visual
Basic, in which MDT was written.
Based on my experience with MIDI Disk Tools I would say one
to avoid. That may seem a harsh statement to make, the bugs can be easily
demonstrated. I have spent hundreds of hours trying to get this software
to work, but alas it is not to be. After seeking opinions from users world-wide
it seems outside the USA this software is unstable.
I have Gary's Ensoniq Disk Manager program and it works. It does
the business. And there's more remember that CD-ROM I bought from Doug?
(3D Sounds - as seen above in the Mirage section) it has 400+ disk images
for the EPS16+ on it! A disk image can contain 1 to 8 or so individual
sounds. I have used Giebler's EDM inconjunction with Doug's Sample Bank
to extract hundreds of samples for my EPS16+ The majority of the sounds
are worthy, once again Doug's CD-ROM is really good value for money.
Also check out Sample Vision (by Turtle Beach) - now can be found free off the internet. I think the sample editing and manipulation is not as good as Cool Ed 96 but does have a built in WAV to EPS16+ transfer module (also has a Mirage module too). This means you can transfer WAVs from your PC to the EPS16+ very simply (and free).
Also checkout Arno Van Gogh, who is a bit of a wizz has produced
a free Transwave designer. I've tried this and it works 100% - good work
Arno.
SCSI
Very useful for fast transfers of samples. To implement SCSI on an
EPS16+ you will need to have the memory pack too, so it can get costly.
Much to my delight I found a third party memory pack and an original
unused SCSI kit on ebay for realistic money. Fitted them and they work
perfect - that has to be testament to the Ensoniq design crew.
Back to ebay to get a pile of CDROM drives, HD and cases etc. Do
have a look at Garth's (Rubber Chicken) list of CDROMs that work, as one
of the CDROMs I bought doesn't work on the EPS16+ and Garth's list warns
me of that. So hurrah for Garth. Also I fitted a 4GB HD which didn't seem
to format correctly, Garth did some investigation and gave me a solution,
it works. Thank's again Garth.
The best unit seems to be the 100MB ZIP drives, they compliment the EPS16+ very well. Easily portable, just enough space not to be to unwieldy, giggable.
The SCSI addition to the EPS16+ is really useful, but not essential.
This is the best place to get free samples for the Ensoniq gear Esqbase
Memory we all want that extra memory. There was a flashbank available but now they are getting hard to find. The usual situation is folks robbing them from fully equipped EPS16+ to sell on ebay. That seems to be the way I got mine anyway!
You’ve no doubt read the script but not seen the card, so here it is. I’ve got close up photos of the board should you fancy having a go at making some. Check out that memory chip F28F020-150 it is now discontinued. The ones I have seen are quite costly but the available versions are either the PLCC or flat SMD jobbie so a full surface mount design would be the way to go. The PCB is 4 layer, looks like usual Gnd and Vcc on inner layers.
To remanufacture these units would be possible but is limited by the cost and availability of the 28F020 chips.
It might be worth giving detail on how this memory works with the EPS16+ It doesn't work like RAM, it doesn't extend sample memory, samples are not played directly from it. You save your samples to it and it stays there. To delete a file requires you delete the contents of the whole memory.
So on next boot up, where the RAM is empty, you transfer files from the flash memory into RAM, sure it only takes a jif, but it's not quite what I was expecting. Upon reflection a SCSI connected HD/ZIP/CDROM is equally as good. Perhaps for gigging it comes in handy but not essential, SCSI is a much better option.